Achieving the Promise of Educational Opportunity: Graduate Student Debt for STEM vs. Non-STEM Students, 2012

Using NPSAS 2012 data, this study examines graduate student debt for STEM versus non-STEM students who were enrolled in a master’s or doctoral degree program in 2012. Findings showed significantly higher debt for those in non-STEM programs as well as differences by amount of undergraduate debt, race, and full- or part-time enrollment status. These differences may encourage more STEM participation, but may restrict some students from enrolling in graduate-level programs, particularly in non-STEM fields. The loss of a new generation of citizens with graduate level training may affect our national economy and productivity, and urges institution officials to consider means to offer financial aid to a larger number of graduate students

An investigation of microstructural characteristics of contact-lens polymers

The free volume and gas permeability in several contact lens specimens were measured as part of a Space Commercialization Program. Free volume was measured using positron lifetime spectroscopy, while permeability for O2, N2, CO2 gases was measured using mass spectrometry and polarography. Permeability for all gases increases with the mean free volume cell size in the test samples. As might be expected, the specimens with the highest free volume fraction also exhibit the lowest Rockwell Hardness Number. An interesting corollary is the finding that the presence of fluorine atoms in the lens chemical structure inhibits filling up of their free volume cells. This is expected to allow the lenses to breathe freely while in actual use

Identifying invertebrate invasions using morphological and molecular analyses: North American Daphnia ‘pulex’ in New Zealand fresh waters

We used a DNA barcoding approach to identify specimens of the Daphnia pulex complex occurring in New Zealand lakes, documenting the establishment of non-indigenous North American Daphnia 'pulex'. Morphological delineation of species in this complex is problematic due to a lack of good morphological traits to distinguish the species, as there is a relatively high degree of morphological stasis within the group through evolutionary time. Accordingly, genetic analyses were used to determine the specific identity and likely geographic origin of this species. Morphologically, individuals most closely resembled Daphnia pulicaria or Daphnia pulex sensu lato, which cannot be separated morphologically. Furthermore, each of these taxa comprises separate species in North America and Europe, despite carrying the same names. We identified individuals using a 658 bp nucleotide portion of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (COI) as North American Daphnia 'pulex', being distinct from European Daphnia pulex sensu stricto and D. pulicaria from Europe or North America. Cellulose allozyme electrophoresis was used to confirm that individuals were not hybrids with D. pulicaria. North American Daphnia 'pulex' in New Zealand were first recorded in New Zealand from South Island lakes that are popular for overseas recreational fishers, indicating a possible source of introduction for this species (e.g. on/in fishing gear). Our study provides an additional example of how genetic techniques can be used for the accurate identification of non-indigenous taxa, particularly when morphological species determination is not possible. The growth of global databases such as GenBank and Barcode of Life Datasystems (BOLD) will further enhance this identification capacity

Design strategies for mitigating passenger door holding behavior on suburban trains in Paris

The length of time a train is halted at a station is particularly important during service peak periods and short headways. Some passenger behaviors, such as the deliberate holding open of doors, has a detrimental effect upon maintaining short dwell times and service timetable. Mechanical malfunction due to door holding is also a significant contributor to trains having to be removed from service.There is a general absence of literature in the transportation field examining this problem or offering potential solutions. This paper discusses a commissioned research project carried out by Monash University’s Department of Design for the French National Railway (SNCF). The method for this research drew upon techniques from other related disciplines to aid in the formulation of a design strategy to mitigate passenger door holding behavior.Leveraging the physical design of the environment to provoke desired behaviors in people is a technique widely used in various disciplines from large architectural projects to more subtle uses of applied psychology. This paper describes the background to the problem as it manifests itself on SNCF’s network in the Ile-de-France and discusses potential design solutions that may have pertinence for other networks similarly afflicted around the world

Image, symbol, and the life of the imaginaton in the works of Sinclair Ross

Until very recently, studies of the works of Sinclair Ross have over-looked his literary artistry to focus on his place among those writers whose time and place is the Canadian prairie during the Depression, Ross’s importance as a literary artist goes beyond this restricted time period. His imagery and symbolism explicate a view of life which is timeless. This thesis examines, in particular, the imagery and symbolism of the horse and the wind as representative of the polarized but co-existing elements of benevolence and destruction in the world. In chapter one—a discussion of Ross’s short stories about childhood—the horse, as symbol of the creative, benevolent side of life, dominates. The wind, symbol of destruction and malevolence, dominates the lives of Ross’s adult characters, as shown in chapter two. However, neither symbol can exist exclusive of the other. As a result, the duality of Ross’s vision of life is shov/n more fully by the interplay of the horse and wind symbols in the novels discussed in chapter three. This study concludes with an examination of the horse and wind symbolism in Ross’s final novel which re-inforces and solidifies his view of the human condition into a single image illustrating the co-existence of the benevolent and malevolent elements of life

Gas permeation measurements on small polymer specimens

Mass spectrometry was used to measure oxygen and nitrogen permeabilities while polarography was used to measure oxygen permeabilities for several contact lens materials. Applicable sample holders were designed and fabricated to accommodate curved and flat specimens. A prepared standard was used to calibrate the mass spectrometric analyses. The oxygen permeability values determined by mass spectrometry were significantly greater than those determined by polarography. This was attributed to the phase boundary phenomena and the limiting oxygen permeance of water inherent in the polarographic technique. Polarographic values determined were in good agreement with proprietary values obtained by polarography, with the exception of one material